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Draft Combine Updates: Thursday Afternoon

May 12th, 2016 at 1:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

The NBA draft combine began Wednesday and kicks into high gear today. The players have been measured, with the the NBA releasing the results on its website, and drills and five-on-five action will take place for willing participants. The general rule is this: The more highly regarded the prospect, the fewer combine events in which he takes part. Cameron Payne was the only eventual 2015 lottery pick who did any basketball activity at last year’s combine, notes Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Top-pick contender Ben Simmons is among those who are skipping the combine altogether, while lottery prospects Kris Dunn and Deyonta Davis will be limited participants, Givony and Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com report (Twitter links). Interviews with teams are a key part of the combine, as The Vertical’s Bobby Marks details, but teams don’t directly select the players they interview, as Marks explains.

Here’s more news on the draft:

  • Givony, writing for The Vertical, said the private workout Skal Labissiere had Wednesday was one of the best he’s ever seen. The big man from Kentucky also interviewed with the Sixers on Wednesday, a source told Jessica Camerato of CSN Philly (Twitter link).
  • Top-10 prospects Brandon Ingram, Buddy Hield and Jamal Murray are among those interviewing with the Celtics, reports Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald (Twitter link).
  • First-round prospect DeAndre’ Bembry will work out for the Sixers on Monday, reports Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). The small forward from St. Joseph’s met with the Nets on Wednesday, according to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link), and Bembry also interviewed with the Thunder, Wizards, Spurs, Pelicans and Knicks, Pompey adds (via Twitter).
  • St. Joseph’s power forward Isaiah Miles worked out for the Celtics this week and will do so for the Nets on May 19th, Pompey also reports. The Mavericks, Spurs, Rockets, Bucks and Knicks will also work him out, according to Pompey, who adds that he’ll interview with the Pacers and Wizards at the combine and previously interviewed with the Mavs, Spurs, Magic and Grizzlies at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, a showcase for seniors.
  • The Nets are among the teams working out Kentucky combo guard Isaiah Briscoe, sources tell Evan Daniels of Scout.com (Twitter link), who also echoes previous reports of his workouts with three other teams.
  • Oklahoma senior shooting guard Isaiah Cousins will work out Tuesday for the Pacers, Zagoria tweets.
  • Oakland University point guard Kay Felder met Wednesday with the Suns, Pelicans, Jazz, Nuggets, Cavaliers, Celtics and Nets, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link).
  • Evansville center Egidijus Mockevicius will work out for the Nets, Bulls and Pacers, reports Daniel Allar of the Courier & Press (Twitter links). The Nuggets, Cavaliers and Magic are also interested in scheduling workouts with him, Allar adds.
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Rockets Notes: Howard, Smith, Hornacek

May 11th, 2016 at 10:00am CST by Chuck Myron

Almost everyone in the NBA expects Dwight Howard to opt out of his Rockets contract, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, but the Perry Rogers client wouldn’t confirm that he’ll do so when he spoke Tuesday on TNT’s “Inside the NBA,” insisting that he hasn’t made a decision and that he hasn’t thought about which team he’ll play for next season, Robbins notes. That’s in spite of an April report that identified four front-runners to sign Howard this summer. See more on Howard amid the latest on the Rockets.

  • The big man remains confident in the viability of his pairing with James Harden, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle relays. “I think we can [succeed together],” Howard said. “I believe we can. Both of us have to put our egos and our pride to the side and say, ‘Hey, we need each other to win.’ That’s the only way we’re going to win.”
  • Howard’s reputation hasn’t been the same since his messy split with the Magic four years ago, but he took strides toward repairing it with his charm and deft handling of the questions from the TNT panel Tuesday, Robbins believes. “I want to win,” Howard said. “That’s why I play this game, and I don’t want to finish my career and not be up on that podium.”
  • Still, no Rockets teammate was asking at season’s end for Howard to return, Watkins tweets, suggesting that it seems as though everyone assumes he’s leaving.
  • The Rockets completed scheduled interviews Tuesday with Kenny Smith and Jeff Hornacek and plan more interviews to come, a source told Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link). Houston reportedly interviewed David Blatt on Monday and previously did so with Mike D’Antoni, Clippers assistant coach Sam Cassell and Rockets assistant Chris Finch. Former interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff interviewed but took himself out of the running. A talk with Hornets assistant Stephen Silas is apparently on the docket and the team would reportedly like to interview Frank Vogel. The Rockets expressed interest in Lionel Hollins, Feigen reported, and college coaches Bill Self and Shaka Smart are said to intrigue the team. Still, Jeff Van Gundy seemingly remains the favorite.
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Draft Updates: Ferrell, Ndiaye, Moore, Hawks

May 9th, 2016 at 4:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

A major draft-related event takes place this week, as scouts, executives and these prospects will gather for the NBA combine in Chicago from Wednesday through Sunday. Teams will start working out players in earnest after that, though some auditions have already taken place. Here’s the latest on that front with the June 23rd draft little more than six weeks away:

  • The workouts that former Indiana University point guard Yogi Ferrell has with the Lakers and Clippers are slated for May 16th and 18th, respectively, tweets Jonathan Goodman of ESPN.com, advancing an earlier report from Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Ferrell will also work out for the Suns on the 20th, Jazz on the 22nd, Bulls on the 23rd, Hawks on the 25th, Mavericks on the 26th, Pistons on the 31st, Wizards on June 2nd, Nets on June 8th, and Knicks on June 10th, Goodman reveals. Ferrell is trying to work his way into the second round, with Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress ranking him No. 66 while Chad Ford of ESPN.com rates him only 99th.
  • Massive UC Irvine center Mamadou Ndiaye will work out for the Rockets and Lakers, Goodman tweets. Givony, who ranks him the 30th-best prospect among juniors, lists Ndiaye at 7’6″, while Goodman says he’s 7’5″. Ford, who also lists him at 7’6″, ranks him the 136th-best prospect overall.
  • Utah State small forward Jalen Moore will work out with the Grizzlies on May 16th, the Timberwolves on the 18th and the Nets on the 23rd, as he tells Goodman (Twitter link). Moore is Givony‘s 69th-best junior and Ford‘s 190th prospect overall.
  • The Hawks worked out Taurean Prince, Justin Jackson, Nigel Hayes, Pascal Siakam, Alex Hamilton and Wes Washpun on Saturday, a source told Jake Fischer of SI Now (Twitter link).
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Rockets To Interview Kenny Smith, Eye Frank Vogel

May 9th, 2016 at 2:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:31pm: The Rockets have spoken to at least seven coaching candidates thus far, but they haven’t gone to James Harden for his input on any of them yet, a source told Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link). Still, Alexander said the team would consult with the star shooting guard and the general belief is that the Rockets will before they make a hire (ESPN Now link).

2:01pm: Houston has spoken with the representatives for Frank Vogel, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The Rockets have wanted to interview Vogel, as Stein reported last week. Feigen also pegs the timing of Hornacek’s interview, which he hears is scheduled for Tuesday, the same day as Smith’s.

1:20pm: The Rockets will interview Kenny Smith for their head coaching job Tuesday, sources tell Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (Twitter link). Marc Stein of ESPN.com first reported the candidacy of the TNT broadcaster last week. Smith shortly thereafter said he enjoys his television work but wouldn’t rule out taking the job. Rockets owner Leslie Alexander and GM Daryl Morey will be in the interview, according to Berman.

Smith, 51, was the starting point guard for Houston’s championship teams in 1994 and 1995. He was linked in December 2014 to the Kings head coaching vacancy, and Smith confirmed that he had conversations with Sacramento in 2013 about a front office position.

The Rockets are reportedly interviewing former Cavs coach David Blatt today in the midst of a broad search. Jeff Van Gundy appears to be the favorite, but the team is reportedly set to interview ex-Suns coach Jeff Hornacek and Hornets assistant Stephen Silas. NBA head coaching veterans Lionel Hollins and Mike D’Antoni, Clippers assistant and former Rockets point guard Sam Cassell and Rockets assistant Chris Finch are other reported candidates, according to earlier reports. College coaches Shaka Smart and Bill Self also apparently intrigue the team. Houston reportedly had mutual interest in Dave Joerger before he struck a deal with the Kings.

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Latest On Kings, Dave Joerger

May 9th, 2016 at 12:48pm CST by Chuck Myron

12:48pm: The deal would indeed be a four-year arrangement with a team option on the fourth season, sources tell Wojnarowski, so the reports on contract length now align (Twitter link).

11:29am: The Kings hope they’ll finalize a deal with Joerger today, Stein hears (Twitter link).

MONDAY, 7:56am: Joerger is just one of three finalists, Divac said, according to Voisin (Twitter link). The identity of the other finalists is unclear. The Kings plan to meet with each of the finalists in the coming days and hope to make a decision by the end of the week, reports Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.

The deal the Kings and Joerger are discussing involves a team option on the fourth season, Stein writes. That would seem to account for the difference between the three- and four-year offers Stein and Wojnarowski referred to earlier.

SUNDAY, 11:55pm: A meeting with owner Vivek Ranadive set for Monday is the last obstacle between Dave Joerger and a deal to become Kings coach, league sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The team flew Joerger and his family to Sacramento, and the sides have made significant progress toward a three-year deal worth about $4MM a year, Wojnarowski hears, though sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com that they’ve been discussing a four-year arrangement for the same annual salary (Twitter link).

Regardless, GM Vlade Divac still plans to compose a list of finalists, and that’s the message that the team has communicated to its candidates even since Joerger’s arrival for today’s face-to-face with Divac, reports Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee, (Twitter links). That suggests Sacramento hasn’t ruled out hiring someone other than Joerger just yet. Joerger, too, has held mutual interest with the Rockets, as USA Today’s Sam Amick noted earlier, and his plan was to wait to hear from Houston before making a decision, according to TNT’s David Aldridge, but whether the Rockets are still in the picture for him after today’s meeting with Divac is unknown.

Joerger spoke at length with Divac today and would have the authority to hire his own assistants, though doubt exists about whether he wants to bring his Grizzlies staff with him, as Wojnarowski details. Still, it’s expected that Joerger would hire Grizzlies assistant Elston Turner, and he’d also likely to bring aboard Bill Bayno, a longtime college and NBA assistant who wasn’t with the Grizzlies, according to Wojnarowski. Turner has already interviewed with the Kings, as Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee noted earlier, but it’s unclear if that was for an assistant job or the head coaching job.

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Rockets Interview David Blatt

May 9th, 2016 at 12:23pm CST by Chuck Myron

MAY 9TH, 12:23pm: The interview is taking place today, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

MAY 2ND, 9:28am: The Rockets are expected to interview David Blatt, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post, who hears from a source who says Blatt is still in the mix for the Knicks head coaching position. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported late Sunday that Blatt has an interview scheduled with the Kings, the other NBA team looking for a head coach. The Lakers had reportedly planned to interview Blatt before they instead moved quickly to hire Luke Walton.

Jeff Van Gundy appears to be the favorite for the job in Houston, where the Rockets will also consider removing the interim tag from J.B. Bickerstaff‘s head coaching title. The Warriors granted the Rockets permission to interview Walton before he took the Lakers job. Houston was the only team among those currently seeking a head coach to make the postseason this year, though uncertainty surrounds Frank Vogel‘s status as Pacers coach after Indiana’s first-round playoff ouster Sunday.

The Knicks believe the 56-year-old Blatt will be a head coach somewhere next season, be it in the NBA or overseas, and they aren’t considering the 56-year-old Blatt for a job as an assistant to Kurt Rambis, as previous reports suggested they were, Berman hears. Blatt interviewed a week ago with Knicks team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills, but Rambis remains the front-runner, according to Berman, who adds that if the Knicks pass on Rambis for the head coaching job, they’d likely offer to make him an assistant to Blatt.

If you were Blatt, which head coaching job would appeal the most to you? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

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Latest on Dave Joerger

May 7th, 2016 at 8:14pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Dave Joerger was let go by the Grizzlies earlier today, but it doesn’t appear as if he will have to wait long to find another coaching opportunity in the league. Here’s the latest:

  • There is mutual interest between the Kings and Joerger, although the team isn’t altering its methodical search, according to Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link).
  • While the Kings are strongly pursing Joerger, he plans to wait on making any sort of decision until he hears from the Rockets, David Aldridge of NBA.com tweets. The Pacers are a possible landing spot as well, Aldridge adds.
  • The Wolves didn’t anticipate Joerger being available and the team believed it would have taken a trade to get him from Memphis, Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press tweets. Krawczynski adds that he doesn’t believe Joerger would be interested in becoming a top assistant on Tom Thibodeau’s staff (Twitter link).
  • The topic of tonight’s reader-driven Community Shootaround is which coaching gig should Joerger take next. Click here to join the discussion.
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2015/16 D-League Usage Report: Rockets

May 7th, 2016 at 5:14pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The NBA’s relationship with the D-League continues to grow, and this season a total of 19 NBA teams had one-to-one affiliations with D-League clubs. Those NBA organizations without their own affiliates were required to assign players to D-League clubs associated with other NBA franchises. D-League teams could volunteer to take on the assigned players, and if no volunteers emerged, the players were assigned at random.

This significant change from the 2014/15 season came about after the Pacers purchased the Fort Wayne Mad Ants and turned them into their one-to-one partner for the 2015/16 campaign. Other NBA teams have interest in following suit in the years ahead, and the NBA’s ultimate goal for the D-League is for all 30 NBA franchises to have their own D-League squads. You can view the complete list of D-League affiliates here.

We at Hoops Rumors are recapping the D-League-related activity for the 2015/16 campaign for each team and we’ll continue with the Houston Rockets, whose D-League affiliate is the Rio Grande Valley Vipers:

The Rockets made 18 assignments for the 2015/16 season, sending four players to the D-League for a total of 89 days. Listed below are all the assignments and recalls made by Houston for the 2015/16 campaign:

Here is how the Rockets’ players performed while on assignment to the D-League this season:

  • Sam Dekker: In seven appearances, Dekker averaged 11.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 23.2 minutes. His shooting numbers were .418/.237/.667.
  • Montrezl Harrell: In 12 games, Harrell averaged 24.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 38.9 minutes. His shooting line was .533/.240/.654.
  • K.J. McDaniels: In 16 appearances, McDaniels averaged 15.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 36.1 minutes. His shooting numbers were .469/.353/.780.
  • Donatas Motiejunas: In four games, Motiejunas averaged 13.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 25 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .525/.467/.500.
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Grizzlies Fire Dave Joerger

May 7th, 2016 at 9:09am CST by Eddie Scarito
Nelson Chenault/USA TODAY Sports Images

Nelson Chenault/USA TODAY Sports Images

The Grizzlies parted ways with head coach Dave Joerger this morning, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (Twitter links). Joerger had asked Memphis for permission to speak with other teams regarding their coaching vacancies and Memphis decided to cut its ties with him, Wojnarowski adds. Memphis is still on the hook for Joerger’s $2MM salary for 2016/17, the scribe notes, adding that the coach’s deal included a team option for the 2017/18 season. The Grizzlies intend to pursue former Pacers coach Frank Vogel, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Sacramento had been pushing hard to gain permission from the Grizzlies to speak with Joerger regarding its coaching vacancy, Wojnarowski relays (via Twitter), and Joerger is now at the top of the Kings’ wish list as they seek a replacement for George Karl. Joerger had requested permission to speak with the Kings and Rockets about their coaching vacancies, as Wojnarowski writes in a full-length post. Sacramento’s willingness to give him a long-range deal with annual salaries likely around $4MM made the Kings attractive to Joerger despite their reputation for dysfunction, Wojnarowski notes.

Memphis confirmed that Joerger was let go in an official announcement. “After careful consideration, I concluded that a change was needed to foster the strong culture required to achieve sustainable, long-term success for this organization, the city and our fans,” said GM Chris Wallace. “On behalf of the Grizzlies organization I would like to thank Dave for his work and time in Memphis. We wish Dave and his family all the best and success as he moves forward in his career.”

The trust between Joerger and the front office had eroded over the past several months, Wojnarowski notes, and tensions escalated between the coach and team management. The organization was frustrated with Joerger publicly making disparaging comments about the roster and his own limited role in player personnel, a league source told the Vertical scribe. Joerger had reportedly grown increasingly belligerent to many within the organization, believing the team was setting him up to fail in 2016/17, Wojnarowski adds.

The Grizzlies are quite high on Joerger’s coaching ability, but they failed to see eye-to-eye on personnel matters, with Joerger believing the team didn’t take his opinions seriously and the team convinced otherwise, as Wojnarowski details. Joerger was pushing for either a long-term deal from the Grizzlies or a way out, and that’s what led to his dismissal, according to Wojnarowski.

In three seasons as the Grizzlies’ head coach, Joerger’s record was 147-99 (.598), including a mark of 9-13 in the playoffs. Memphis reached the conference semifinals in 2015, losing to the eventual champion Warriors. The coach arguably did his best work this season, leading a patchwork roster that had been decimated by injuries to a record of 42-40 and the seventh playoff seed in the Western Conference.

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Latest On Kevin Durant

May 6th, 2016 at 11:10am CST by Chuck Myron

The theory among the teams eager to pursue Kevin Durant this summer is that the Thunder’s second-round series against the Spurs will decide whether he leaves Oklahoma City, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Durant would stay if the Thunder win and leave if they lose, Stein relays, stressing that it’s merely an assumption among the front offices. The Spurs, with the series tied 1-1, indeed have designs on luring Durant to San Antonio, Stein hears, echoing what several rival executives suggested to Chris Mannix of The Vertical in March.

Zach Lowe of ESPN.com recently compared the talk about Durant joining the Spurs as “eerily similar” to the early rumblings that connected LaMarcus Aldridge to San Antonio last year. Still, the Warriors loom as another powerful suitor, and The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported in February at that they would be significant front-runners for Durant if he were to leave the Thunder. Golden State is optimistic about its chances, and chatter has gone on since the Warriors’ record 24-0 start about the kinship Durant formed on Team USA with Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala, Stein writes. The Wizards, Heat, Celtics, Rockets, Lakers and Clippers are planning hard pushes for Durant, too, according to Stein, who cautions that it’s premature to peg any team aside from the Thunder as the favorite to land him.

Neither the Warriors nor the Spurs have the cap flexibility to sign Durant for his max of an estimated $26MM for next season without making trades, waiving players via the stretch provision, or both. The Vertical’s Bobby Marks illustrated a scenario involving maneuvers that would give the Warriors enough room to sign Durant, and Danny Leroux of The Sporting News laid out San Antonio’s path. The Clippers would have to offload either Chris Paul, Blake Griffin or DeAndre Jordan, as I noted in our offseason outlook for the team earlier today.

The teams who assume Durant will stay with the Thunder if Oklahoma City advances to the next round of the playoffs suggest he’d go for a two-year contract with a player option on year two, the same sort of contract LeBron James favors, according to Stein. That would allow Durant the flexibility for him to hit free agency again next summer, when Russell Westbrook‘s contract expires, and it would represent the most lucrative path for the former MVP, as I examined. Still, Durant told Stein at the All-Star break that he hadn’t considered such a contract structure.

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